Do minorities have a right to resist the will of the majority?

I know this is going to sound stupid, but bear with me. If the majority are wrong (in a basic, fundamental way) then every effort should be made to resist their will.

@Aug: Agreed.

However, generally, ‘the minority’ is usually the minority for a reason, at least in an ideological sense. Now, if we’re speaking of ‘minorities’, that’s an entirely different discussion.

Your question is very broad.

I’m not 100% sure, but I think you can resist if you want to as long as you’re okay with dealing with the consequences. Ex: Taxes. The majority of people just pay them. You can refuse to pay your taxes, but if you do then you had better be ready for the legal repercussions such as audits and the like.

Is this what you’re talking about?

Not when democracy is in control. Not all majority are correct, at least not totally correct. Basically, i feel peop[le are just protecting themselves wherever and whenever. Nothing out there is ever able to accomodate every persons needs. Majority is just an easy way out.

I agree, agustian.

Where would we be if we didn’t have the civil rights movement?
Or equal rights for women?
Those are two minority populations whose rights were non existant until there was resistance to the majority.
I’m sure there are other examples.

@basp: Heh, women aren’t a minority. There are more of them in the world, always has been, thanks to war. :)

But, I agree.

It depends on the rights given the minority by the government under which they live. On the other hand, there are some who feel that a Constitutional Democracy protects against such tyranny.

What do you think, MontyZuma?

Considering rich old white men are a minority, yes.

American Revolutionaries were a minority against the English back in the day.

I think the beautiful thing about democracy is that as long as you abide by the laws you have the right to do anything you want. If you want be part of the minority on anything you can. If you want to be part of the vegetarian minority, you can. If you want to pursue a different religion than the Majority, then you can.

I think you should clarify your question though.

In cases where the minority wants to do something that only effects them, and the majority refuses to let them do it, the minority has every right to resist the majority.

If the minority wants to make a change in something that will have strong and direct impact on everyone, whether they want it or not, the will of the majority should be respected.

Our government was set up as a constitutional republic because the fathers were fearful of tyranny of the majority. That’s why we have 3 branches that are supposed to check and balance each other to make sure each is obeying nothing but the constitution.
The biggest problem is that most people think we are a democracy and do not realize such problems we are facing. Alexis de Toqueville explained the threat of tyranny of the majority. The threat doesnt come from a majority of people, but from a minority of special interests controlling the way the majority thinks. Just look at our media and public relations. The decleration of independence states that it is our duty to defend ourselves from tyranny and we must get back to the constitutional republic we were set up to be. Until then, the majority will be influenced by media and nothing will change.

One of the smartest men I’ve ever known used to tell me “You can do anything you choose to do…so long as you’re willing to accept the consequences.”

Hell yes. I don’t think rights have anything to do with it but it is human nature. Look at America. A very small minority resisted England and look where we are now. Think about WWII where there was little resistance for certain groups of people and what a mistake it was. Do you mean a right as in something allowed by the government or a right as in a ” god given right” that comes with the nature of being a human?

The funny thing people like to FORGET is majority rules, WITH MINORITY RIGHTS!

if the majority is infringing on anyone’s rights (both human rights and/or rights designated by the constitution)then the minority has the right to discent. There is nothing wrong with discent.

Do minorities have a right to resist the will of the majority?
Yes

If so, how far does this right go?
Entirely too broad to offer a general opinion here. Ideally, I would like to say that they have the right as long as they are not infringing upon other people’s rights as well. However, this would get tricky because you could say that the King of England had a right to collect taxes from the colonists.

It’s not about a right of the minority to oppose an unjust majority stand, it’s a responsibility

Majority versus minority is too general to choose who has the right to influence whom. In most cases, since the language of ‘minority’ and ‘majority’ suggests membership of the same group, I believe that every member ought to have the opportunity to be heard. In a perfectly balanced distribution of power/importance/relevance, where every individual’s opinion is as valid as the others’, then majority rules. Beyond that simplistic example, the sway a subset has depends almost entirely on context.

yes. its called choices.

Yes. (As long as it’s by legal methods.) I think the situation over Prop 8 in California is a case in point. Basically, the majority got together and decided to revoke a civil right given to a minority group (gays). They are resisting both through the courts and through the voting process. I say all power to them.